By the end of Sunday’s six-hour, 16-minute marathon at Honor Credit Union Stadium, the wait was worth it.

Behind a monster day from Owen Nowak and another winning decision from Luke Weber, Kenosha snapped its four-game skid and picked up its first win of the second half with an 11-5 victory over the Kalamazoo Growlers. The win helped the Kingfish split the two-game series, even the season series with Kalamazoo at 3-3 and head into the All-Star break at 22-18 overall and 1-4 in the second half. Kalamazoo fell to 24-18 overall and 3-3 in second-half play.

The game featured a three-hour, 11-minute rain delay and lasted 6:16:31 from first pitch to final out, but the Kingfish offense made sure the long day ended with some badly needed momentum. Kenosha scored in each of the first five innings, built a 9-2 lead by the middle of the fifth and never let Kalamazoo climb all the way back.

Kenosha struck first in the opening inning. Ethan Moore doubled to right field with two outs, Dawson Downs walked and Matthew Cormier followed with an RBI single to center field to give the Kingfish a 1-0 lead.

The ’Fish added to it in the second when Ezra Essex launched his first home run of the summer, a solo shot to left field that made it 2-0. Kalamazoo answered in the bottom of the third with two runs on RBI singles from Chase Thomas and Joshua Algarin, trimming Kenosha’s lead to 3-2 after the Kingfish had pushed across a run in the top half on a sacrifice fly from Noah Alvarez.

Then the Kingfish broke the game open.

In the fourth, Hunter Snyder drew a one-out walk before Nowak unloaded for a two-run home run to right field. Kenosha kept the pressure on with three straight walks later in the inning, and Cole Ide forced in another run with a bases-loaded walk to stretch the lead to 6-2.

Nowak delivered again in the fifth. With Snyder and Will Matuszak aboard, Nowak ripped a two-run triple to center field, giving him a single, homer and triple through five innings. Downs followed with a sacrifice fly to score Nowak and push the lead to 9-2.

Nowak finished 4-for-6 with two home runs, a triple, five RBI and four runs scored. He ended the afternoon just a double shy of the cycle while driving the Kenosha offense from the top of the order. The Kingfish finished with 11 runs on 11 hits, drew 12 walks and hit three home runs.

Kalamazoo got one run back in the seventh on an Algarin sacrifice fly, but Kenosha answered again in the eighth. Essex walked, moved around the bases and scored on a Matuszak sacrifice fly before Nowak hammered his second home run of the game, another shot to right field, to make it 11-3.

The Growlers cut into the deficit in the bottom of the eighth when Brandon DeGoti hit a two-run homer, but Travis Maxwell worked a clean ninth inning to finish off the win.

Weber remained perfect in the win column, improving to 3-0 on the summer. He allowed two runs on seven hits across three innings while striking out three and walking none. Ian Fisher followed with a scoreless fourth, Kyle Hirsch gave the Kingfish three strong innings out of the bullpen with just one run allowed and three strikeouts, and Maxwell closed the door in the ninth.

The win closes Kenosha’s road trip at 1-4 and sends the Kingfish into the All-Star break on a much better note. After four days off, the ’Fish return home for the first time in the second half to open a four-game homestand against the Rockford Rivets on Friday, July 10. First pitch at Simmons Field is set for 6:35 p.m. CT.